My Son
by Angelus-alvus
Summary: AU based on my other fanfic, Facing Yourself. Skulker's POV about how he met Daniel and how he grew fond of him. Skulker and Danny in a father/son bonding. Oneshot


Author notes:

1)English is my second language. Forgive me for any mistake.

2)I don't own Danny Phantom.

3)This is an oneshot and it's going to be entirely made under Skulker's POV.

4)This contains spoilers for my other DP story, Facing Yourself. I would recomend read it first if you don't want to be 'spoiled'.

5)Thanks Truephan for being my beta! You rock!

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Where do I even begin? I've always dedicated my life to hunting. I loved the thrill of it. Setting traps, shooting and even fight animals with my own hands. I can remember the time I struggled against an alligator. Fine, I may have had a knife at that time, but that doesn't mean that the necklace I made with its teeth was less worthy of the effort.

My father had also disapproved of my choice of living. He thought I had a great potential to become a police officer just like him. He was a quite strict man. He hardly showed any emotion and I can count on my fingers the number of times he smiled at me and even praised me. Both of them on one hand.

I guess part of my decision to become a hunter was because I wanted to tick him off. But I think what I really wanted was for him to just be happy with my decision on how I decided to live my life.

I got pretty famous when alive. People all around the world paid me to get rid of "plagues". You know, some annoying animals that hunt farmers' livestock and some animals with so-called "appetite for human flesh". I knew it was nonsense to even think that an animal would try to prey on humans. Usually a wild beast only attacks those who invade its territory. But money was money. And I made some serious cash out of those jobs.

I thought that way, my father would be proud of me. But he kept not acknowledging that my job was a legit one. He kept saying that I needed to stop being selfish and have a job that would benefit the society like being part of the police or being a doctor or a teacher. I growled at him and told him that I wouldn't even care if he should drop dead. Then, I left and never returned to the house I grew up in. I only had my dad, because my mother had died at my birth.

One week later, I got the news that my dad had been killed. One of the guys he arrested got his revenge on him. I was told he didn't suffer, because it was a shot to his head and he had died instantly.

I can't describe what I felt. Guilty, anger, sadness? I can't tell. All I knew was that I wanted to skin the person who did that myself; after all, tracking down monsters was my specialty. But it wasn't necessary. The police found him hanging from the house he used to live before he was arrested.

According to what one of my father's friends told me, that guy left a note saying that he committed suicide after killing my dad for ruining his life. He still claimed to be innocent of the murder he was accused of. In the letter, he said that his wife had left him with his children and he blamed my dad for it. I don't know if he was innocent or not. All I care about is that he can rot in hell for what he did.

I decided to focus entirely on my hunting after that. I just wanted to forget about everything else. I kept hunting until I met my end at the paws of that damned bear. I still remember the pain I felt while it ripped me apart. But I can't say that it was the most painful thing I've experienced in my existence.

After I woke-God knows how much time later-I was at someone else's laboratory. Technus's for a matter of fact. That ghost had saved me. According to him, my soul and body couldn't sustain themselves because it was missing many important ghostly organs and such. I didn't understand it very well.

He had to merge me with this robotic suit in order for me to keep existing, at least as a ghost. I still had to eat and sleep even in this body. I guess I should be thankful for not losing more than just my original appearance, but Technus had managed to keep my facial features even in this metallic body.

It was weird for me to get used to my new condition. I couldn't feel heat or cold anymore, but, fortunately, not all my senses were gone. That ghost had managed to preserve some of them in me. That'swhy I could still feel some degree of pain and even the taste of food.

I felt like my world had crumbled before me. I had to accept I was a ghost now and nothing would change it. I started to wonder about all the stuff I could have done while I was still alive. I always wished to have a family, but I wondered how to be a good father when my own wasn't exactly the best example… I didn't know how to be one, as a matter of fact; and I feared I would repeat my father's mistakes, only to have my son or daughter hate me, like I did my father…

I remained at Technus's laboratory for several days for observation. He told me he didn't want me to destabilize, so he had to keep an eye on me in case something went wrong when he merged me with this robotic suit.

After he was sure I wouldn't melt away, he offered himself to explain to me everything he knew about ghosts and the Ghost World. I never believed in ghosts or stuff like that before and I never put much thought into it until now.

We chatted for days. Well, it was more like a one-sided speech from him as he answered all my questions. It didn't take long, however, for him to ask who I was before I met my end.

I told him about my job as a hunter and before I could even notice, my gloomy mood disappeared as I started to boast about the many beasts I captured and the fights I had. He seemed really interested as he listened to everything.

The next day he showed up with an offer: "Would you like to have a job?"

I raised an eyebrow at such a bizarre question. I had to wonder why would ghosts even have jobs? "What kind of job?" I asked, a bit suspicious at the man's sudden question. From my experience so far, nothing was for free. I imagined if all his help was just some kind of elaborated plan to get me to work for him to pay up for the expenses of my treatment or something like that. Not that I wasn't thankful or anything like that. I would gladly pay him back, but I wasn't going to do anyone's dirty work.

He smiled at me and asked: "Have you ever considered working for the police? We could use someone of your talents. Well, that's if you're interested, of course."

His words rang so many bells in my head that I immediately had a headache. I was surprised to even feel one even as a ghost, but seeing that ghost saying the same words that my father used to tell me. I was surprised to even feel one even as a ghost; but, really, after hearing that ghost say the same words that my father used to tell me, I'm not shocked that I did get a headache…

"I…" I started to say, unsure, but I must admit I was thankful for what he said once he noticed how hesitant I was.

"You don't have to answer now, you know. After I'm sure you can fend for yourself, you're free to go. You can try to move into an empty house in one of the many doors here in the Ghost World, or you could build your own on one of the islands. It'll be up to you." he explained to me.

All I could say was: "I'll think about it…"

After that, he smiled and performed some more tests on me to see if I was healthy enough to leave the laboratory. However, it took a month for him to give me permission to leave that place, and it nearly drove me crazy. After all, I'm not the kind of person who would like to spend so much time at one single place for too long.

Before I left, he told me I could come back anytime if I desired to work for him. I liked the fact that he wasn't pushing me to work for the police. The idea of finally working at what my father always had always pushed on me troubled me a bit.

The ghost of technology had told me to get an empty house inside of one of the purple doors, even if it were small for the time being. He said that it was a bit dangerous for new ghosts to wander off in the Ghost World. He also told me that I would recognize an empty place if it didn't have a tag on the door with the surname of the person or even family living in it.

Before I left, Technus gave me a few lessons on the basic ghost powers. Flying, invisibility and intangibility. He said I needed to have at least a good control on these powers in order for me to survive in this world. He also told me that any other ability I might have would appear some time after getting used to being a ghost.

I didn't have any idea of how dangerous that place really was. Maybe I was a little too overconfident in my fighting skills, but I wasn't used to this body completely.

It didn't take long for me to encounter the first hazard in that place. I learned after I joined Walker's police force that some ghosts spread chaos and havoc in both human and ghost worlds. They were completely green, with red eyes. I've never seem something like that before. I wonder up to this day how those things were even human before. They barely resembled one.

That ghost dashed against me with its claws pointing at me. I tried to punch it, but it turned intangible and my fist phased through it. I didn't know how to gather my spectral energy to hit intangible ghosts yet. I tried to hit it many times, but it became intangible everytime; but I wasn't fast enough to do the same trick when he attacked me.

I have to admit that I had to run. I know it wasn't the most honorable thing and I'm ashamed of it, but I didn't know how to defeat it if my punch wouldn't connect to its ugly face.

As I flew, I often looked behind to see that thing still chasing me. Yes, I know. The hunter being hunted. Irony bites, blah, blah, blah.

I was so desperate to get rid of it, I entered into the first purple door without a name on it. As soon as I got into that place, I saw a key in the lock and I locked the door without thinking twice. I could hear it bumping against the door and punching at it for a few minutes until it gave up. I wasn't stupid enough to just open the door to check if he was gone. One of the rules of a good hunter is to draw the prey into a false sense of security then attack when your prey has its guard down.

I decided to explore that place and I surprisingly saw how big that place actually was. I mean, it was inside of a floating door for crying out loud. I decided to turn it into my provisory home.

On the next day, I left my new "home" to make my path way back to Technus's place. But when I closed the door, I was surprised to see that my name was already written on the door. I later found out that those doors react to the person's feelings towards it. When the person who lives there doesn't want to live there anymore, the name disappears and the key teleports back to inside of the house.

I was quite hungry and when I got back to Technus's place, he told me that the Ghost World was much similar to the Human's. There were ghosts who cultivate their own food on their islands; there were ghosts who worked to get money to buy food and other things they might need; ghosts who steal from others; and even ghosts who didn't need to eat at all, acting as if they were plants or something- but this last kind of ghost is really rare.

I decided to pick up a few random jobs out there to get some money. I helped some ghosts with problems such as helping some with some farm duties, other times just to deliver messages and packages from point A to point B, and the list goes on and on.

Quickly five years passed by. I got used to my powers and I must be frank. I was bored out of my mind. I mean, I traveled a lot in the Ghost World, but everything became dull for me.

I did go hunting some ghostly beasts every now and then and made some trophies of them. But I didn't have the same thrill I used to have when I was alive. I also used that time to think about what to do with my afterlife.

I started to seriously consider joining this so called 'police force'. I also asked a bit more about it everytime I went to see Technus for my annual check-up. That ghost also gave me many upgrades for my suit, so that I now had many hidden weapons in this metallic body.

The last thing I needed to know about the police force was that if I decided to join it and I didn't like it, I wanted to be able to just get out of it. The ghost of technology explained to me that I could get out of it if I didn't like it, but only after a year of work. I was bound to it until this time expired even if I decided to leave it. He also told me that very few ghosts give up on the police force, mostly because they're there because they want to. Walker never forced anyone to join it.

I ended up giving it a shot. I was surprised how well this job made me feel. Well, it had its downsides, but what job doesn't have at least one? I still wonder what my father would have said if he saw me working as a policeman. I guess I'll never know. Knowing him, he would say 'I told you so' or something like that.

Another thing I had to be thankful for in joining the police force was meeting Wulf. We had a rough beginning because I considered him to be more of an animal. I didn't understand the concept of a 'werewolf' and I thought they were nothing but a myth. But I saw that he was a really nice guy and I befriended him after some time.

He even helped me out more than I can ever thank him for. He became like a brother to me. He helped me to get back at that stupid bear which killed me, finding a new home for me and for…taking care of Daniel.

I think I should start talking about that little hybrid who made me feel like I were his father…

One day, many years later, during one of my patrols, I heard a noise. It was like someone was screaming at the top of their lungs. I quickly tracked down its source and I was surprised by two things: first, the source of the scream was really far from where I was and the second thing was that the source of the yelling was just a small white-haired ghost boy.

By the time I got there, my heart immediately sank at the sight. The boy was now unconscious. At that moment, I assumed that he had been screaming because of his shock. After all, it isn't easy for anyone to find themselves to be dead and I felt very sorry for someone so young to have met his end.

I gently picked up the boy and took him to my home. There wasn't much to do. I would never forgive myself if I let that kid floating alone at such a dangerous place. I didn't know what to do. I had no idea where his parents were or even if they were ghosts. Not all people who die become ghosts, so there was a good chance that the kid was completely alone.

I let him rest on my couch. The kid was in a deep sleep. No matter how much I tried to wake him up, nothing worked. I wasn't sure what to do. It hurt me a lot to leave the child during daytime while I had to go to work. But I managed to get home earlier.

Fortunately, he was still asleep when I got home. Three days later, he finally woke up when I was still at home; however the poor boy had lost his voice. He also seemed to be frightened. I couldn't really blame him for that. It must have been a huge shock for him.

I tried to explain to him what happened as I tried to make him eat something. I also tried to cheer him up. But I made the stupid mistake of bringing up that he was a ghost. It was too much for him to handle at that moment and after panicking, he fell unconscious again.

I quickly took him to my bed and I tried my best to make him wake up again. I was starting to get desperate when he finally woke up. Thanks to my horrid way with kids, I ended up shouting at him. I was so worried I didn't check my attitude and I ended up forgetting I was dealing with a small child.

What surprised me the most was that the kid in front of me then just transformed. At first I didn't know what was going on, but I'm thankful that Clockwork explained to us what the boy was. I had already learned about the Time Master during my existence in the Ghost World. As far as I knew, he was responsible for making time goes 'as it should be' whatever that meant.

I honestly didn't care much about his half-human status. I'm not like Walker who holds a deep grudge against them. And, honestly, I wanted to help that kid out. I let boy rest in my bed for the time being while I thought of a good place to turn into his room.

I had an old room I barely used and I decided to turn it into his bedroom. The boy also recovered his voice after some time.

I knew that he would have to eventually go back to his family. By then, he had already found out about Wulf, who was at a mission for Walker. But I couldn't help but to start feeling attached to that kid.

It hurt me to see him in such distress. I did my best to fill his time and keep him company. I didn't know what to do to make his pain go away. I tried to play with him and even encourage him reading.

I've seen him smiling every now and then, yet even his smile had some sadness to it. I wished I had the power to help him out myself.

Another curious thing that happened was his discovery of his fire powers. I never imagine that he was the kind to have elemental powers. I won't forget anytime soon how his face looked when he burned that book.

I took him to see another friend of mine, Sunburn. I met him in one of Walker's attempts to make the centaur join his police force. He's a nice guy once you get to know him well.

Sunburn helped the kid to control his fire powers. I have to be glad that Walker thought I adopted Daniel so he allowed me to have the Sundays off to take him to practice his powers.

It surprised me to see all the things he could do. I also found amusing how he tried to be 'an adult' and independent. I also helped him to train his hand-to-hand combat skills, and during my vacation, I often took him to hunt with me. The little halfa sure has a good aim.

It hurt so much after a year and half since I took him into my home. I grew really attached to him to the point of considering him my own son! I wanted him to call me dad and I wanted to call him son. But, as far as I knew back then, his parents could still be alive and worried sick.

One night, after he fell asleep after unleashing a power of his that he called a 'ghostly wail', I carried him to his bed to tuck him in and I made the mistake of saying: "Have sweet dreams, son."

I immediately panicked after saying it out loud. However, he mumbled: "Good night…daddy…"

I knew that he was talking while he slept and he was probably dreaming about his family. I wished I could comfort him in a better way. But I knew that I wasn't his real father and I thought that the boy saw me just as a nice guy who was helping him out.

I kept telling myself that the kid already have a family and that he would be back to them pretty soon and all I had to do was control myself. I couldn't afford to turn our relationship into something really awkward.

Eventually Wulf came back to the Ghost World and I knew that the boy would soon return to his home. I could feel my chest aching in this metallic body. I didn't want to let the boy go, but I had to. His place wasn't here with me; it was with his family. That was what I kept telling myself, at least.

I told Wulf everything. I was a bit afraid of telling him about Daniel's human half and why he needed to go to the Human World. But I never lied to him before and he deserved to know the truth. The reason that he was like me and didn't hate humans like me helped me to gain the courage to tell him everything. I also ended up telling him how I felt about the kid. He told me I was really noble, but it didn't make let letting the boy go less painful.

When I saw his happy face before we left to the Human World, my heart sank. That was it. That would be the last moment I would share with him. I even wondered if Wulf would agree to taking me to the Human World to pay the boy a visit every now and then.

Daniel was so happy to see his parents again that he stormed to his house without waiting for us. We decided to follow him because both of us wanted to make sure he would be safe and sound. Besides, there was no guarantee that his family still lived in the same house or if they were alive. The shock could be too much for the kid to handle.

But it was worse then I thought. Those sorry excuses for parents dared to hurt such a good child just because he was a ghost! I suddenly understood why Walker hated them so much.

I tried to take the boy from there, but those monsters kept shooting, especially that weird guy wearing white. Before then, I had only heard about his organization from Walker. That it was an organization made with the purpose of eliminating ghosts. And I thought that my boss was paranoid.

I tried to blow him up for what he was doing, but the boy's pleas made me stop. He thought I was going to kill his family, but I guess that he was right. The explosion could have killed them.

But then, I saw that Guy-in-White taking something from his pocket and throwing it against the boy. I didn't even think twice. I wouldn't let anything bad to happen to him; and if I could go back in time to that moment, I would do the same thing in a heartbeat.

I was hurt, but I quickly managed to put myself in front of that weird projectile. I thought it would be extremely painful, but it was only uncomfortable. At that time, I thought I was going to die for good and there would be no second chances for me. The sole thing I wanted was to hear the boy calling me 'dad' at least once before I fell unconscious…

When I woke up, I was at in some kind of hospital bed. I didn't know what was going on. I thought I had died **again**. But I could see a few humans wearing doctor masks around me.

I was strapped against a ghost-proof table and my mouth had some ghostly duck tape over it, but I don't remember it very well. But I knew I couldn't say anything, except to just listen to their ramblings.

There were many humans there and they were talking about making experiments on me. I could even recognize a few of them as Daniel's family! I wanted really badly to punish them for what they did to their own son. It sickened me how low they could be.

I started to panic, because I feared deeply that the boy could be in a similar position as I was. I prayed that Wulf had managed to take him to safety. It was all I could do, in fact.

I clearly remember my muffled screams as those sick bastards ripped my body apart for whatever reason they had. It was just after I was rescued that I discovered that they were trying to create a serum to turn humans into half ghosts.

I never told this to anyone, but I still have some nightmares about what happened with me. Some of them are about Daniel suffering the same fate as I. It's a parent's worst nightmare to see their kids suffering and dying before him or her.

Those bastards always made sure I was conscious before they ripped me apart. I guess some of them enjoyed see me suffering. I have to admit I wished many times to have just died already. The pain was horrible to endure. That nightmare lasted for five years.

But one day, when the humans put me to sleep, I woke up in the Ghost World. I was really confused and for some reason I didn't feel any pain. Only later did I discover that the nurses kept injecting pain killers into me. They had to do this so the patients didn't start screaming in agony, because we still had those horrible wounds.

I think that what surprised me the most was seeing Daniel sitting on a chair next to me when I woke up for the first time. I didn't even have time to react. The boy hugged me and kept apologizing over and over again for putting me into that situation.

I never blamed that kid once for what happened. The only ones who were at fault were the GIW and his parents. I was so happy and relieved that he was safe and sound, but I noticed that he had grown up quite a bit and that made me wonder how much time I was out.

I suddenly noticed that I missed the remaining of the little halfa's childhood and good part of his teenagehood. But at least I was back and with a bit of luck, I would somehow receive new fake limbs from Technus, which actually ended up happening after my body stabilized from the severe loss of ectoplasm.

While I recovered, Daniel and Wulf told me everything that happened while I was out. I must say I didn't like one bit to see that boy being part of the police force at such a young age. But Wulf assured me that the boy's will to try do his best to make the GIW pay for what they have done to me was the main reason why he joined the police.

Unfortunately, even after receiving my limbs back, I would never be able to be a field soldier anymore. I was stuck with the job of training recruits. Walker even offered me the position of third-in-command. The only reason why I accepted it was because of Wulf and Daniel's insistence. They said I deserved such a promotion, but I didn't know how I could keep up with the title in my current state.

The boy and my werewolf friend kept me company everyday and even Sunburn appeared once in a while to check on me after he recovered. I heard about the whole rescue plan and the assault against the GIW facilities.

The young hybrid also told me about his other self from another timeline and the wild adventure they had. He also told me that thanks to him, the ghost police force had managed to win and rescue me and the other ghosts.

I must say I got really worried. I didn't like to hear about him getting near such danger. I wanted him to have a normal childhood. I wanted him to be happy and carefree. I didn't want to see him having near-death experiences on a daily basis!

I also kept trying to make the boy rest at home, where it was at least more comfortable for him, but he insisted to sit on that same chair and keep me company. I almost cried seeing him like me to such point.

One day, very late at night, Daniel had fallen asleep on the chair and I watched him with a smile. I was surprised to see how he managed to fully control his ability to remain ghost even during sleep, but again, he did the same thing while he was such a small child. I just wished I could move him to a more comfortable position. Fortunately, Wulf arrived to take the boy home, but when he saw him asleep, he took the teen to an empty bed next to me. The ghost who was there had recovered and left two days ago. So we thought no one would mind if we let the boy sleep there for just one night.

Wulf tuned to me and sat on the chair Daniel was before and asked me: "How are you feeling?"

I could see the concern in his expression. I replied truthfully: "I've had better days…But I'm getting better."

The lycanthrope smiled at me, but then he sighed and said: "I'm really sorry. I should have acted faster. This shouldn't have happened to you…"

I quickly cut him off, but I kept my voice low so I wouldn't wake Daniel up: "Look, no one knew that this was going to happen. It wasn't your fault and it wasn't Daniel's fault, either. Like my father wisely told me once while I was still a teenager, 'shit happens'." Then I turned my gaze to the sleeping halfa and then back to Wulf. "He grew up quite fast…I hope he didn't give you too much trouble."

Wulf raised an eyebrow and there was some awkward silence, but then he told me, and for some reason it seemed like he was trying not to smile: "Now that we're talking about him, I must say that you owe me one."

I had to admit I didn't exactly know what he was talking about at first. After thinking a little I replied: "I'm sorry…I didn't mean to throw the responsibility to raise the boy for me."

Wulf raised an eyebrow and he replied: "What are you talking about? I enjoyed raising him. He's like a little brother to me. What I'm talking about is that you owe me one because I was the who had to talk to him about the birds and the bees! Can you imagine how awkward it was for me?"

I couldn't help but to chuckle at his statement. I must also admit that it would be awkward even if I tried to explain that to him.

Wulf then snapped me of my thoughts as he said: "He asked me to tell him all I knew about you. The boy had listened to me telling him of our adventures with such fascination t every word. He really missed you, you know."

I quickly turned to look at Daniel's sleeping form. It warmed my very existence to know that he cared so much about me. I just wished I hadn't missed those five years of his life, but I thought I could make up for the lost time.

When I finally was allowed to go back home, Daniel and Wulf barely let me do anything. They kept saying that I still needed to rest, but I was tired of doing nothing at all.

Just because I don't have the same mobility as before doesn't turn me into a something useless. I made them understand that. Don't get me wrong, I know that they were doing it because they care a lot about me and they don't want me to get hurt, but I can still have a normal life, for crying out loud.

Days passed by and I noticed that Daniel was a bit worried. I asked him what was troubling him and after I insisted a bit, he finally told me. He wanted to meet his family again.

I was told what happened to them and, honestly, I don't think they even deserved to have such a wonderful kid. My opinion, at that moment, was that they were just a bunch of monsters who would slay their own child just because he was different.

I dreaded that they might try to do something to the boy if he tried to get near them again. I highly objected to that idea. But he looked at me and told me that all he wanted was to put an end to the doubt in his heart.

He told me that all he wanted was to truly know if his relationship with them still had some salvation or not. How could I deny him the right to see the people he still loved so much? It hurt me to see him having so much hope in going back to his family.

I'm fully aware I had my share of selfish thoughts. I didn't want to let him go see his family because I also feared they might want him back and I wouldn't be able to see him again unless Wulf took me to the Human World. It also made part of me feel like he was ignoring how I felt about them. I know that he told me to stay in the Ghost World and wait for him, but I wasn't going to sit down while my…**son **walked into the lion's den to try to save his relationship with those ungrateful bastards! Part of me wished that he would give up on them and start treating me like I were his real father. I know that this is incredibly selfish, but that was how I felt. I know that the boy cares a lot about me, but I thought he would never see me as a substitute for his crappy family.

I told him that we should at least prepare ourselves before doing such a dangerous thing. That boy even asked Sunburn to tag along with us and the centaur agreed, to my surprise. I guess that Wulf, Sunburn and me had one mindset: To protect him in case anything went wrong.

When we finally got ready, we went through Wulf's portal and arrived into the Human World. I can't believe I set my foot in into that place again. If it weren't for Daniel's sake I highly doubt I would be going back there.

Wulf had asked Technus to find them for us. I kinda wished he had never found them. But at least this would save us some time.

As we flew there, I started to fear that this would be the last time I would see that kid. Questions plagued my mind. What if he decided to abandon us and go back to live with his family again? What if they finally accepted him? What if Daniel didn't want to stay with us anymore?

As soon as we saw them, my ectoplasm boiled in anger. It took me all my willpower to not do something really stupid there. I kept my guard up all the while I was there. Last time, they caught me in surprise, but if they dared try to harm Daniel once again, I would show no mercy. I know that if I did this, the boy would probably never forgive me, but I would be able to live with it if it meant that he wasn't going to be hurt by them anymore.

Truth to be told, I never expected them to have a change of heart. What happened to them all those months ago at the GIW facilities must have made them see some light, but it still doesn't make their crime any less horrible. They dared to try to kill Daniel several times and even did unspeakable things with me and many other ghosts.

But it was also a problem because now that they accepted him, he would go back to live with them. My heart sank. I didn't want to say goodbye. But what they boy said afterwards surprised me the most.

He chose not to go back to live with them. What the young hybrid said showed a lot of maturity from him and I'm not saying this just because he chose to stay with us. I could see the pain in his face as he told them all those things. I could see he really wanted to go back with them, but he didn't follow this urge and used his head to solve this problem.

I would, of course, keep coming back with him everytime he decided to pay his family a visit, after all, I still don't trust them.

After we came back, Daniel explained the reason for his choice, confirming what I had previously thought. That kid had grown up so much while I was out. It made me question my parenting skills.

My friends, Sunburn and Wulf, tried to comfort the boy, as did I. Still, I had to muster all of my strength to then say: "I know all this was hard for you. Like Wulf and Sunburn had just said, I'm always going to watch over you, Daniel. You're a good and strong kid. I…really hope your family can fully comprehend how special you are."

The halfa suddenly hugged me. I could see that he was crying as he tightly held me. I also hugged him back giving into my emotions. I could hear him whispering "I'm so sorry for being so selfish…"

I assured him also whispering so only he could hear: "I already told you. You aren't being selfish. It's every kid's dream to have a happy family…You went through a lot. I know you love and miss your family back in the Human World, but…You're like family to me, too…You're the son I always wished to have…"

Yes, I finally told him how I felt. It was a 'now or never' situation. I couldn't keep this in my chest for the rest of my afterlife. I don't care if he never calls me 'dad', but I needed to hear from him how he truly felt towards me.

He raised his head and look directly into my eyes. I could see those bright green eyes and the tears coming from his face. I instantly regretted saying that to him. I started to think that he had misunderstood my words. The last thing I wanted for him to think was that I was making him chose between his family and me.

With tears still in his eyes, he smiled as he told me: "You're like family to me as well…You were like a second dad to me. That's why I'm so sorry." Then he closed his eyes as he leaned his forehead against me and continued: "There aren't words enough to show how thankful I am for everything you've done. You've always tried to help me, always protected me and even now you always were by my side to give me strength even after everything that has happened to you."

If this body of mine could produce tears, they would be streaming by now. I held that child tightly against me. I don't care if we aren't related by blood or ectoplasm, or whatever. I just couldn't ask for a better son.

I always doubted of my parenting skills, I always feared I would end up like my father. But I was wrong in many different things. I guess my father was just too afraid of telling me how he felt. I guess that all he wanted was for me to have a safe and happy life in his own unique way of saying it. Too bad I'm not going to be able to see him, at least for a long time.

I'm happy. Happier that I've even been in my entire afterlife—or life. I'm glad to hear all those kind things from this boy and to hear he considered me his family as well. I might not have much practice at it, but I'm going to do my best to teach, protect and take care of…my son.

The End

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I hope you enjoyed this story. I would love to read your comments.


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